Libetarianism

Let us now attack, ridicule, and point out the weaknesses of a
philosophy that has gotten a free ride for too long: the utopian
zit known as "libetarianism".

People who believe in libetarianism believe in an ideal world
where all decisions are made by pure economic self-interest. They
believe that if there were no government, that anarchy would
naturally lead to a peaceful state of universal harmony. If only we
couild get rid of the fire department, police department, and all
deliberative bodies, then humanitys naturally angelic side would
come out and show itself.

Libetarianism starts with an ideal state. It says that one day, long
ago, everyone was a rugged individual living in a cabin with a gun,
a dog, and intense solitude. These individuals needed nothing from
others. They were totally self-sufficient. How they got there, no
one knows. However it was, it sure wasn't with the help of anyone
else. It was a rather autistic world in those days.

So, there I am, in my cabin, with no social skills. Then it occurs to
me that I'd like to have your cabin, too. What's to stop me,
besides you? If I defeat you, it's mine, right? There is no law, after
all. There is no society. Only isolated individuals.

So I go over and shoot you, and your land is mine. Well that was
easy. I start accumulating lots of land this way, because I am more
of a ruthless psycho than my neighbors, and this gives me an
advantage. Eventually it occurs to me that I could keep some of
these others alive as long as they'd give all their labor to me. Voila!
I have slaves. A libetarian paradise is born.

There is no law but the gun and the shock of ruthless self-interest.
In the real world, this would be most like Somalia, or rural Pakistan
- currently stateless areas as of this writing (2007). These are the
places that best exemplify what happens when libetarianism is put
into practice. Stateless, they are therefore ideal for the more
powerful warlords to rule over the less powerful local terrorists.
Meanwhile, the common people cower or go along to survive.

Libetarian paradise!

So, okay.

Let's start with another scenario. Let's start with todays world, as
it is, and slowly turn it into a libetarian paradise. Let's defund
roads, schools, police, fire departments, all law-making bodies and
courts, no public health care or social security of any kind. Of course,
you can see how this will lead to an ideal world.

Libetarianism is an idealist fantasy, founded on a fallacy, and
supported by ignorance. Like the Easter Bunny, it is pleasant enough
to believe in, but not practical to count on when taken seriously. It's
kind of a geek thing - like believing in Star Wars. Serious people are
not libetarians, not really.

Serious people may toy with the idea as an amusement, but soon
realize its limitations in reality, and set it aside. Never trust an old
libetarian - they have a screw loose, or a disengenuous axe to grind.
In other words - they're liars or they're nuts. Avoid them. If they're
not taken seriously, they're harmless. If taken seriously, they are
very dangerous. Public policy should not be based on fantasy.

Libetarians are coddled by the media. This is because they're
entertaining, and they have some positions that appeal to almost
all parts of the political spectrum. So, they are for not stupid drug
laws - yay from the left! They are against all taxes - yay from the
right! But those cartoonish positions mask the problems that lie
underneath this philosophy that show through if you so much as
dust its surface.

A few of the false premises of libetarianism:

- The assumption that lawlessness leads to order.
- The assumption that all humans started on an even playing field.
- The casual acceptance of cruel ends to the "losers" of the game
(No medical care for the poor, no justice for the weak.)
- The assumption that an individual can find a better life for himself
alone, rather than with the support of a group.
- The assumption that human achievement can be done without
support of a community.

Libetarianism is the philosophy of curious fourteen year olds, the
temporary stance of a person with no real life experience. It is the
classic "sounds like a good idea until you think about it" idea.


Keith Webster

Trickle-Down Economics Explained

Please click for an enlarged view.

The Class War: How's It Going?

The class war is over. Hold your breath for the big news: the rich
won.

Actually, the other classes haven't even really noticed it yet. For
the most part they haven't even realized there was a class war going
on - because they were so busy working to please the rich, and the
rich kept on telling them that there was no class war.

The only problem is, the rich are sore winners. They keep piling it
on. Metaphorically, the middle class and poor are lying on the mat,
signaling that they submit completely to the demands of the rich.
The referee is frantically signaling that the match is over. And still,
the rich will have none of it.

It's as if the rich have a grudge. So they ignore all signs and continue
to body-slam their opponents into the dirt. They stand on the ropes,
big bellies jutting out, and flop those bellies onto their already weak
and vanquished opponent. And they declare that nothing is
happening as they do it.

Perhaps there was a time, ever so brief - that the rich actually feared
they had a real chance to lose the match (whatever could that
mean?). Now that small, distant fear has turned to rage and they
wish to pulverize their opponents into the emergency room. They are
enraged. They are deranged.

It's too bad the other classes don't even realize there's a fight going
on. They are distracted with the day to day of work, of getting by, of
existing. In their off time they are amused and distracted by the best
entertainments and fluffiest news the rich's companies can provide.

Certainly no one encourages them to be aware. So, they probably
don't notice that they are poorer, have fewer services, have fewer
freedoms, worse educations, than they used to have.

And those who do, risk falling into cynicism. What to do?

There are signs of a slow awakening. That bleeding, battered lump
on the ring floor may slowly realize it is being needlessly robbed of
its life. Why is this even a fight? There is enough money to go
around. Why does one small greedy group need it all?

Can these people be reasoned with? It sure doesn't seem so, but one
would think there are at least a few of their number with a
conscience. Surely they aren't all insane?

What if we are ruled entirely by sociopaths? Well, then.

Revolutions occasionally happen, after all.

Working On the Third Testament

It is a fine Sunday evening at Nina's Coffee Cafe in St. Paul,
and the magic of the evening is slowly dissipating my dark
fantasies of doing nasty things to Generalissimo Bush and
Commandante Cheney. Maybe it helps that I'm only drinking
decaf.

The slow grind of the rusty wheels of democracy are being heard
here in the hinterlands, which really aren't hinterlands anymore.
Democracy is almost dead, and it certainly isn't a sport for the
poor or even the non-influential. Yet enough members of the
elite have been pissed off by the arrogance (shock!) and
incompetance (who knew?!) of the leadership currently installed
for them to make a fuss. So Congress is prying into the workings
of the Sacred Cheney.

The Bush Administration, while still no doubt hand-picked by
God, now raises doubts about just which god it was that did the
picking.

This god certainly had an evil sense of humor. A vengeful bastard.
Which goes to show that the Old Testament prick we read about
and are appalled by is back. Maybe somewhere out there a third
testament is being written - and this new one is much more like
the first - fantastic tales of exceptional cruelty, jealousy, stupidity.
And it's featuring the Bush Administration.

It becomes smack-my-face-with-a-frying-pan obvious that this
president was chosen by God over Jesus strenuous objections. God,
in yet another of his drunken, enraged, jealous stupors, whapped
Jesus across a galactic cluster and plunked George W. Bush into
office just to piss off that insufferable do-gooder. Like a frat-boy
College Republican saying crap to just to piss off the oh-so-sincere
liberals, God is having a bit of diefic fun.

So the president, pretending to be still on Jesus side as he stumbles
and slides into the pit of being The Worst President Ever, carries
out the will of a much harsher, more irrational God.

This story isn't even half over yet, and I'm sure we don't even know
half of what's really gone on already. I just know that it'll make one
hell of a third testament when it's finally compiled.